That Tangible Something
by Limey
Summary: A chance rondez-vous in the streets of Tokyo help the odd pair of Darien and Serena realize that gruff words could be another way of saying 'I love you' after all.


**Disclaimer:** Naoko Takeuchi owns Sailormoon and not me. But I still have dibs on Darien. :p  
**Author Drabble: **This is an old story I wrote four years ago, back when I was obsessed with Sailormoon x 20. grin It's all DiC- bastardized, so look forward to terms such as "Crossroads Junior High", "Cherry Hill Temple" and etc. And just for your information, it's set right after Zoicite starts flitting around the city as the fake Sailor Moon.  
**Last note:** This is the 2nd or 3rd time I've submitted this to due to formatting problems… hopefully it's the last time. :)

That Tangible Something.

"Really, though...you should be nicer," Andrew said slowly, brushing some of his golden-blonde hair absently and away from his face. "She is only fourteen."

"Yeah...fourteen and already losing brain cells," the tall, black- haired man replied breezily, sitting himself down on a hard stool. Andrew sighed, his green eyes looking sternly at his best friend.

"You know, Darien, I'm sure that you find it fun to be sarcastic like that to any other college student, but to a girl four years younger? Isn't that being a little mean?"

"Not at all," Darien said nonchalantly. He looked up at Andrew, then raised an eyebrow slightly. "I don't suppose you've taken the position of Meatball Head's guardian?"

"All I'm saying is that she just comes in here to play video games, and runs out crying every time you happen to be here."

"Which is a lot," Darien finished. He tried not to roll his eyes at the ridiculousness of the conversation. "I'm sure she doesn't take these things to heart, Andrew. She doesn't seem like the type to be saddened just because one old grouch of a college student picks on her every now and then."

"Well, why is she the only one you ever pick on?" Andrew crossed his arms over his manila apron purposefully, glad he had finally been able to make Darien think instead of reply instantly. The silence, interrupted every now and then by an electronic beep and the hum of the video game machines, was a little unnerving. With Darien still silent and sitting on the video game stool, Andrew made an exasperated expression with his face. "Don't tell me that you're jealous of her liking me or something."

"Jealous?" The mere thought of him being jealous of his best friend's teeny-bopper club made Darien a little angry. And the president of the 'We- Love-Andrew' movement herself, Serena? DARIEN, jealous of Andrew and SERENA? No, only a little ticked off...  
Well, maybe a lot.

"I seriously doubt being jealous. You can have all of the pre- adolescent girls, I hold no claim."

Andrew's lips became thin and straight, pressed against each other. "Look, I didn't mean it like that."

"I'm sure you didn't," Darien said bitingly, his expression turning sour. He smoothed his dark-colored khakis before continuing. "And to tell you the truth, I'm quite happy not being the affection of Meatball Head. She's all yours."

Somewhere in his mind something vehemently disagreed, leaving him confused. But he chose to ignore it.

"Okay, I'm sorry for putting it that way," the blonde-haired man said finally, sighing. "I didn't mean to make the situation sound like that." He uncrossed his arms slowly and walked to the UFO-catcher Machine, putting his hands in the pockets of his long apron. His eyes focused on Darien, green eyes matching blue. "Well? Why are you so mean to just her?"

"Truth be told," the man started out quickly, casually. Something else flickered as he thought about it. "Truth be told..." He stopped.

Why was he so mean to her? She wasn't different from many of the other junior high girls he always seemed to run into everywhere--except she was the only one that literally 'ran' into him everywhere. It was almost uncanny, how they seemed to keep crossing paths. He tried again.

"Truth be told...I...don't know."

"What?" Andrew had been leaning against the catcher machine, but at his friend's vague response he almost lost his balance. "What do you mean, 'you don't know'? You always have an answer for everything." Darien snorted.

"Well, I guess I don't have one today, do I," he said flatly. It was more of a statement than a question, but Andrew nodded absently nonetheless. "It's just something about her. A kind of switch that puts me in 'Automatic-Jerk' mode."

"You know," Andrew said quietly, looking down at the tiled floor of the arcade, "if you like Serena, you shouldn't act so immature about it." Darien's head, which had drifted towards the direction of the video screen to his right, shot up and rigidly glared at Andrew; Andrew looked back warily, trying to read his friend's eyes.

He wanted to smile. In the midst of the sharp, disgusted swirls of blue, he could see...confusion.

"W-what? Are you kidding? Of--Of course not!" Idiot, idiot, idiot, he cursed to himself. 'Just be like an idiot and stumble when you're trying to deny something that's obviously wrong and not true.' Andrew couldn't suppress his smile any longer, and Darien matched it with a fierce scowl.

"She is pretty," Andrew said, his eyes dancing. In his mind, he was reliving the scenes in which Darien had teased him about Rita, who was two years younger than the both of them. His ridicule and constant teasing actually had Andrew in a helpless rage. _Now_, a tempting little voice whispered in his ear, _now you can have a small bit of payback._

Let's take a look at these two college students first, however. Normally, Andrew was an easy-going, friendly guy in contrast to Darien, who kept to himself and was hopelessly sarcastic. But Andrew's face lit in a wicked grin, which was very uncharacteristic of someone with his personality, and Darien's face was slightly red, the mark of someone caught with a crime or embarrassment. The story continues.

"Even though Serena's only fourteen, she could be mistaken for someone older, couldn't she? And she seems to take to you pretty well."

"You mean, she seems to hate me pretty well," Darien countered with a mutter. He wished the blood would stop rushing so quickly to his head. 'Okay, okay,' he thought to himself calmly, 'imagine Meatball Head and think of five reasons why you can't stand her.' Without closing his eyes, he pictured Serena in a dress he had seen her wearing the other day...surprised he could still picture it as if she was standing next to him, modeling it for him.

It was a pale, pastel of a yellow--almost cliché yellow, the kind that everybody seemed to wear in the spring. Covered lightly with blue-grey flowers and light green leaves, it looked like something a girl would wear for a day out in the sun. On Serena--he caught his breath, frowning as he tried not to smile. It was like wrapping sunlight and blue daisies around a beam of moonlight. 'Geez, Darien,' something inside him groaned. 'You're so mushy.' But the dress fit her quite well--it wasn't overbearingly tight, the style that some girls liked to revel in--but fitting to her petite body, her slender curves peaking out in a modest, timid way.

The sleeves were barely existent; reduced to a sheer, pastel-yellow material that barely covered the shoulders and draped off quietly mid-arm, giving the dress an ethereal look. And the dress gave off a classy effect-- coming down a little lower than mid-thigh, it was a little risqué, but still conservative.

'And...I can recall this information so easily because...?' Not wanting to think of the answer, and trying to avoid the inevitable answer, he rushed on with his descriptions hurriedly.

Now for the face. Something in him rejoiced silently, while he tried angrily to repress it. Her thick, golden-blonde hair was tied into two, perfectly round buns--Meatballs--haha, Meatball Head..., and streamed down like rays of sunlight from her head. Darien cringed outwardly. Where did you get THAT mushy description? He continued to visualize her.

She was pale, but not an unhealthy pale--an ivory-quality of paleness. And her eyes were blue...almost as blue as his, but not as deep. Or as cold. They were large, almost too big for her face, but proportional enough to look normal. And...and...

_And beautiful._

Darien wished to God that his inner voice would shut up.

'Okay...five reasons why you can't stand her.' He took a deep breath, unaware that Andrew was still watching him intently--and grinning so hard, his cheeks looked swollen.  
Reason Number One: She can be incredibly annoying and childish. _But with a person like you, a girl would **have** to be a little childish. It would be so much more fun to be with them._ 'Shut up, shut up...'

Reason Number Two: She can never keep her mouth shut. _Serena just loves life, and she wants to share that with others. You never give her a chance to share it with you._ Sighing, he decided it was harder to try to silence the voice than to let it prattle on and left the comments alone. His eyes found their way to a blank video screen that was out of order, and he focused on the grayness of the glass absently as he continued.

Reason Number Three: She can't seem to walk two blocks without taking half of the people on the street with her. Including me, most of the time. _But you enjoy it, don't you, Darien? You like it when she falls into you and you hit the ground together. The apologetic, bashful smile and expression she gives are worth the sore body part._

Reason Number Four: She's incredibly loud. _Err..._ Darien smirked. He had managed to outsmart his own thoughts...now there was an accomplishment. _Not so._ Damnit. _She's always excited to be around people, and who better than you?_ His face turned sour again, unhappy that the voice had countered back.

And Reason Number Five: She's a total airhead! _You're just angry that she doesn't act as happy or as nicely as she does with Andrew when she's around you._ The voice dared to speak the two words that Andrew had practically had his head bitten off for earlier in the conversation. _YOU'RE JEALOUS_.

The fires of hell could never compare to the inferno in his eyes...

"I am NOT jealous!" Darien burst out angrily, his face getting redder. He stood up quickly, straightening his green sports jacket brusquely. Andrew, who had watched his friend silently contemplate within himself, decided to do something as he took his hands from his apron pockets and held them up towards Darien calmly.

"Don't go out of here so angry," he said quickly, stepping towards the entrance of the Crown Arcade. "I was only joking, really." But the temptation was much too great for even Andrew to bear as he let himself grin slightly at Darien's wildly angry face. "But...you do like her, don't you?"

"Move." And with that, the dark-haired man strode sharply out of the arcade's glass doors, leaving his best friend wide-eyed and scooted to the side of the doors. They closed slowly in front of him soon after the incident, and Andrew's eyes flickered mischievously. He even found himself whistling as he made his way back to the back room of the arcade.  
He couldn't believe it. After being the rage of Azabu Tech's single women, the crush of all the girls in high school...

"No one would believe it," he smiled secretly. "The Ice Prince falling for Serena? Nobody would believe it."

Still keeping a quick pace, Darien's blue, narrowed eyes made contact with none. He had shoved his hands into his khaki pockets soon after he had left the Crown Arcade and Andrew, and they remained there, stiff as rocks. Every now and then he would allow himself to think, and to think was torture.

Because every single stupid free wondering thought always ended up on Serena.  
His face started to turn red at the syllables of her name as he pressed his lips even more tightly against each other.

'I am NOT jealous, I am NOT jealous, I am NOT jealous...'

"Darien?"

"What?" he said sharply. Even the word seemed as if it was spit out of his mouth. The teenage girl looked hesitant behind him, her violet eyes a little concerned. He turned around to face her sharply, then eased his expression. "Oh...hello, Raye."

"Geez, you must be pretty...P.O'd at someone to be so mad!" Raye laughed uncomfortably, her cheeks turning slightly pink. She hated her reaction to Darien...every single time she seemed to spot him in the streets or at events, she would tingle with excitement. And turn as red as a strawberry. 'God, that last comment to him was lame,' she muttered inwardly.

"Yeah," he said absently, his hands still rooted in his pockets. His eyes locked onto the sidewalk pavement and stayed there as Raye continued to talk. It was kinda funny, how he knew she was talking and could even hear her talking, but the words never reached his ears. Looking up at her every so often to show he was listening to her (and whatever she happened to be babbling on about), he noticed she was wearing the exact same dress he had seen and pictured Serena in.

'It is pretty on Raye...I guess...' But nice as the dress was, and as well as she happened to fit it with her curves...

It just wasn't natural, that's all. 'Maybe that's only because...because I saw Serena, first--NO! I saw Serena wearing it first, that's it...yeah...' Darien trailed off in his mind weakly. The dress just screams her name, doesn't it? that voice said coyly. Somehow, he could imagine the voice smile--weird as that sounded. Trying to block out what kept contradicting his thoughts, he missed most of what Raye was saying...something about a karate tournament she had wanted to see. When he finally looked straight at the raven-haired girl, he saw the quizzical expression on her face.

"Did you hear what I said, Darien?" He nodded lamely. Her face lit up in an excited smile. "Great! So I'll call you tonight, and we'll go to that tournament on Sunday!"

"But--" He tried to say something, but she had already turned away from him and started walking in the other direction. He sighed, frowning. 'She always hooks you into these things.' But he didn't really mind. Raye was a nice person to talk to, but he could never really consider her more than a friend. He knew what she considered their 'relationship' to be, but let it slide.

Andrew is right, Darien thought to himself suddenly. I am nicer to everyone else but...but...but her.

"Oh, and Darien?" Raye had turned around with a smile, pulling him out of yet another inward denial. He looked up at her and smiled back.

"Yeah?" Raye's face looked apologetic for a second.

"If you see Serena--"

That name again. His face burned.

"Why would I ever see her?" he said sharply, averting his face to a nearby building. Looking closely at his flawless features, Raye could swear that his cheeks were a red tinge. And the thought of that made her wildly jealous.

"Well, you probably know better than to run into that Meatball Head- for-brains, anyway," she finished curtly. "But if you see her, tell her to come to the Cherry Hill Temple at seven for a late study session." And with that, Raye turned on her white heel and almost stomped in the other direction.

Darien watched her go quizzically, until he put his hand to his cheek and felt the warm burn of his skin. 'God, I'm blushing.' His eyes went wide in horror as he started to walk again, ducking his head a little as his hands went back into his pockets. 'I wonder if Raye is jealous.'

He began to feel cooler on his cheeks after a few minutes of walking and took a deep breath, relieved. Now all he had to worry about was that karate thing Raye wanted to go to, and his upcoming Psychology report, perhaps that application to Harvard... Nah. He decided to put off the scholarship offer until he was ready to handle the stress. He had enough of it already, living by himself. And it didn't help that the modeling agencies kept bugging him to come back into the business either.

Geez. All it ever seemed like he did for a social life nowadays was go out with Raye, hang out with Andrew, and study. Sighing yet again, Darien wondered if life could get any worse (or boring) than it was already. He had barely walked past a tall building, contemplating his life (or lack thereof) when a barely audible, familiar sound came softly to his ears. As if it had crept slowly to his senses. His feet automatically stopped; his hands were thrust into his pockets nervously. Backtracking a few steps to where there was a small alley between the two buildings he had just passed, he saw a small figure slouched against the wall of a building in the darkness. Crying.

'God, please don't tell me that...that it's...' Darien squinted his eyes to see through the thick blackness of it all and could barely see two round, golden balls atop the person's head, with hair streaming down each ball. 'Oh, joy,' he thought sardonically, trying to ignore his feelings of excitement and worry. Her hands were clasped over her face as she trembled suddenly, not noticing him standing near her, watching her. She cried in muffled sobs to herself--not the usual, decibel-scale screams. She was hurting over something serious, he thought softly. Then he stopped himself.

'Wait...how do I know that? It's like...I remember it from somewhere. Weird.' He tried to push the thought out of his head. As alien as it was, he didn't want another thought clogging his mind. He squinted farther into the darkness, then took a step towards her lonely, slouched figure.

And he couldn't help but stare at her silently for the longest time-- long to him, really--as the sounds and signs of the outside world ceased to be for those few moments. As he stepped closer to her and farther into the darkness of the small alley, he saw the little details and memorized them. There was one little blonde curl dangling over her forehead but never falling onto her porcelain skin...her small, white hands were shaped--no, must have been shaped--by the finest crafter...her cute little uniform with the big red bow. Just like a present.

Wouldn't it be nice if the present were for him? Something in Darien ached, wrestled. It felt like his stomach was turning in millions of knots, like butterflies were hatching and flapping away in his gut. Clenching his fists to try and block out the wrenching yet wonderfully warm feeling in his body, he took a deep, inaudible breath while opening his mouth wide.

But words weren't supposed to come out! They were supposed to stay put, stay under control as the person willed them to be!

"Hey, Meatball Head!" 'Damnit!' He could hear echoes of curses and insults and put-downs all directed at him as his face scrunched up in pain and embarrassment. 'Damn, damn, damn, damn...' And why did his voice have to be so cutting, so mean? Why did it come so naturally when it came to her? Why--no, how...HOW could this girl evoke emotions in him so extreme, he could ruin his digestive tract with a thought of her sky-blue eyes?

Darien's face dropped and became long as soon as Serena's eyes peeked over her slender fingers, her normally gorgeous eyes brimming over with hurt tears. As soon as he had seen them, they disappeared behind the cover of her hands again.

"Just...go away," she said brokenly, her voice muffled. Serena slouched even lower on the wall. "I don't need your insults at a time like this, jerk."

Ouch. Okay, so even Serena had a limit. It was to be expected. And normally, Darien would have walked away saying a comment equally as mean back to her. But for some reason, today seemed to be the exception.

Today had so many firsts.

"I'm...not going to insult you, Serena. What's wrong?" His hands had become unclenched as he took them out of his khaki pockets and crossed them over his chest awkwardly. Leaning against the opposite building wall, his eyes stayed on the pavement near her black shoes. "Did you get a bad grade, or something?"

Something in Serena stirred at this different tone of voice. She uncovered one of her eyes and wiped her wet hand with her skirt absently, sniffling as she studied him.  
Darien had on the usual outfit he wore--green sports jacket, black turtleneck, dark khakis. He had crossed his arms over his chest while staring at the ground as if it engrossed his interest. She found herself looking at his face suddenly, and brushing her excess tears from her eyes she looked at his.

Deep, dark pools of alluring blue. They seemed so familiar. And his cutting, soft black hair seemed perfect in every way. Even down to the few black bangs framing his face and cutely falling short of his eyes. Serena wanted to brush her hands through his hair, strangely, and ruffle it up. She could remember it now...the short, silky strands seemed to brush upon each of her fingers like water.

Her eyes became wide as she took a sharp intake of breath. 'Remember Darien? From where?' He couldn't...couldn't possibly be related to anything from the Negaverse or the Moon Princess, could he? And if he was, which side? The questions buzzed through her mind at millions of miles a second as she kept staring at his downcast eyes. Before Serena realized it, his blue eyes weren't downcast anymore and were looking straight into hers.

'Oh, I hope he's not from the Negaverse...I wouldn't like that at all...' But why not? something inside her asked softly. 'Well...it just...I...he's Raye's boyfriend! That's why! That's it!' And then, as she was finally satisfied with her weak answer, she realized that they were staring at each other. Serena turned her head to the street outside of the alley quickly, turning a delicate pink. Her eyes remained wide with embarrassment.

'I hope she doesn't know I know she was staring at me...'

'I hope he doesn't know I know he was staring at me...'

Serena watched a car or two drive by as she breathed slowly, letting out breath she didn't know she had been holding in. And all she could think about were his deep, beautiful, gorgeous eyes...'NO!' something screamed in her. 'This is Darien, Serena! Get a grip! He's the guy that constantly teases you, makes you cry, and GOES OUT WITH YOUR BEST FRIEND! Doesn't that mean anything to you at all?'

Darien watched her quietly, his face unreadable...except for the cursed flush of his cheeks. He shuffled his arms a bit and switched them, crossing them over his chest again uncomfortably. Well...at least one good thing had come out of this. She had stopped crying, and that made him feel a lot better. He still wanted to know what could upset her so terribly.

Little did he know her thoughts were along the same lines as his.

'Whaddya know,' Serena thought to herself suddenly. 'I've stopped crying. And thanks to him.' She bit her lip nervously, bringing down her other hand from her pale face and clasping both hands onto her skirt. 'But I couldn't ever tell him why I'm crying. Because this whole 'fake Sailor Moon' thing hurts a lot. I mean, how could Raye and Lita and Amy say those things? More of Raye, really...I thought I had finally gotten her respect. And now, this stupid copy of me starts waltzing around Tokyo like she owns the dumb city.' She stiffled an oncoming sob as she bit her lip mercilessly. 'I know...she does a better job at it than I do.' Another rush of tears surfaced at this thought as she tried to fight the flood. 'Okay, Serena. Chill out for a sec and think of something else.' Immediately, her thoughts went to the college student nearest her.

She should really say something to Darien, though, shouldn't she? He had been standing there, more patient than most. Serena kept wondering why...wondering 'why' about everything.

Perhaps it really was some unknown force that happened to push these two together at many times. Maybe it was just by chance. But neither wanted to wait to find out as they opened their lips to explain what needed to be explained.  
"I--" Darien started quickly.

"Well, I--" Serena rushed hurriedly. Swiveling her view to his eyes again (geez! She couldn't resist!), the silence seemed to fill up their minds as the outside world was once again obliterated from their senses. They looked at each other for a few more moments in tension, before saying "You go first" simultaneously.

There was another pause, one in which the tension melted away and smiles crept onto both faces. Without expecting it at all, both college and junior high student began to rip apart at the seams with unearthly laughter. Passerby heard the wild, hysterical laughs, peeked into the alley and, seeing nothing but darkness without bothering to look harder, stepped hurriedly away. But stares, glares and even side comments were unheard. Looking up at him, Serena's laughter faded to slow giggles.

"This is totally ridiculous," she said with a last giggle, wiping her sky-blue eyes with leftover tears as her cheeks became a healthy rose. "But...it's cute." It took all she had in her to keep her from saying 'But...you're cute.'. Darien nodded with a silly grin on his face that she couldn't interpret.

"You're...such a Meatball Head," he breathed, his chuckles dying down as his deep blue eyes sparkled mischievously, resting on the young woman in front of him. Now it wasn't just his stomach that was having a fatal reaction to Serena--it was his heart, curse the stupid organ. A part of him didn't fully believe it, and couldn't...wouldn't admit it--whatever it was-- to him. Something in him indulged in the fact that he was so close to her, so near to her. And he didn't understand either emotion at all.

"Darien...you know I hate it...when you call me that," Serena trailed off, almost absently. A frown tugged at her lips as she took a step towards the light, away from the alley. "Serena would be just fine." Her sentence trailed off, a tad more curt than she had wanted to be. Looking out and around the sidewalk, she was surprised that it was, strangely, almost deserted, with the occasional car, bus or passerby strolling along nonchalantly.

Almost as if...as if someone had made it so. Like she and Darien were meant to spend this time together. Serena tried not to think about it as she peered back into the darkness of the alley she had occupied a few minutes ago, looking for Darien.  
'And that's another thing,' she thought to herself softly. 'He's such a total puzzle, and it's like the pieces are there for me to pick up and put back together.' What a weird simile, she thought to herself as she shook her head.

Darien watched her contemplate silently, somehow knowing that her precious thoughts were of him.

"Meatball Head using her brain for once?" his voice said bitingly, before he could stop himself. He groaned within himself as he couldn't help but mull over what he had told Andrew earlier: 'It's just something about her. A kind of switch that puts me in 'Automatic-Jerk' mode.' Jerk...that's what I am... The ebony-haired man watched Serena's expression turn from blissful to hateful in less than a second. Trying to scrape up what dignity she had, the girl tried not to let her hurt feelings show.

"N-No...I'm just thinking about...what a...hopeless case you are!" she stumbled angrily, her eyebrows furrowed. She was right all along-- Darien was a total jerk. How could she have ever thought that...that...frustrated with herself and her straying heartbeats, she turned from him frostily and began to walk in the direction of her house. Even though everything in her body was screaming for her to turn around and go back.

Darien was scared of what would happen between himself and her if he let down even more of his defenses. 'Stodgy college student style is not the way to do it, however...' he grumbled to himself. Well... why did he care what Serena thought, anyway? It's...it's not like he--like he... Admit it, stupid. You're starting to like Serena. And it scares the heck out of you. 'But...but she's...she's Serena!' he answered back to himself fitfully. As if that was any excuse at all. But he had seen the hurt expression on her face as she had turned around and left. It made him feel more terrible than ever. Darien, you are such an idiot, his inner voice said angrily. 'Don't I know it,' he answered the voice with a sigh. Running his hand through his soft black hair frustratedly, his fingers brushed the cuff of his green jacket.

It was something...something about her. And then, maybe it was his imagination. Darien just knew that he couldn't let her walk away in a huff and swallowed his stubborn pride as he took a step towards her retreating figure. Then another. Soon, he found himself running to catch up to her, a rush of exhilaration running through his body. 'Just like chasing after a bunny,' he thought fleetingly, as he watched the setting sun's rays reflect off of her long, golden pigtails. "Err... Serena, wait a sec."

"Why?" Her voice was gruff, but her thoughts were not. She didn't turn around but she could tell that he had been running after her by the ragged breaths he was taking in the silence...and just to catch up to her, to talk to her. To apologize to her. That was...sweet.

'No,' Serena thought violently, 'it's not. And I won't let myself get all mushy over this.' But her eyes met his, and between the dark and light shades of blue there was definitely a--a feeling, a something there...that disappeared so quickly, both man and young woman hardly realized something had happened.

Looking away quickly after the gaze, Darien remembered Raye's request. 'Study session, study session,' something buzzed in his mind slowly, as if he couldn't comprehend the words. Swallowing, he looked at the surrounding scenery and then sighed. 'C'mon, just say 'I'm sorry, Serena!' and it'll all be over from there.'

The words 'I'm sorry' were stuck in his throat, however, along with the million other things he wanted to say.

"Well, Raye said you guys had a late study session, and said I should tell you if ever I saw you around today," he breathed gradually, looking at the streetlight that had suddenly turned on. Serena's face of hope turned to that of disappointment for a split second before she masked it with a fake smile.

"Wow...thanks. I guess I'd better go over there now." Feeling slightly stupid, Serena turned around to the direction that she had come from and started walking back. Tears started to smart her eyes as she kept walking faster...faster...

"Mea--ah, Serena..." The mention of her name from his lips made the petite girl stop immediately. She heard footsteps behind her as they made noises on the grey sidewalk, some slow, some fast. And towards her. The girl trembled inwardly.

It was such a vicious cycle...

'Don't look back, Serena,' she willed herself, the tears still in her eyes for a reason she couldn't possibly imagine. 'Don't give Darien the satisfaction of seeing you hurt.' Hating herself, the girl turned around slowly as she blinked, trying not to meet his eyes.

"T-Thanks...for at least calling me by the name I've had since birth," she stuttered slightly, trying to be aloof and failing miserably. Darien scratched his head embarrassingly as he gave a weak smile.

"You're welcome." The silence was so thick, it felt like jelly. 'Why isn't anyone around?' Serena wailed to herself fleetingly. 'This is so awkward. I hate it.'

"Look," he started in a soft voice. The same voice he had used to talk to her when she was crying, Serena noticed instantly. "M--Serena, I'm really sorry for...for how I've been so...so mean to you...and all." Bringing his hand down to his khakis, he shoved it into his pocket--a sign of uncomfortableness. "You don't have to forgive me." He faced the sidewalk with a sad frown on his face, his eyes musing over every crack as if it were more interesting than anything he had ever seen.

'Darien, you're so cute when you let yourself be,' Serena thought inwardly. She had no doubt as to whether she would give him forgiveness or not.

"But--I do...forgive you, that is," she said haltingly, her tears gone. A smile tugged at the corners of her mouth again as she decided to break the solemn mood. "Because no one could ever not accept an apology from you, Bashful."

"Excuuuuse me?" Darien had a look of pure amazement on his face. Amazement, then masked by a sly grin. "I'm not one of the Seven Dwarves, Dopey."

"What did you just call me?" Serena screeched, trying to put on an angry face. It didn't work, and she found herself giggling. Before she knew it, they had started to walk in the same direction, towards the Cherry Hill Temple. The lighted streetlamps glowed as if they emitted warmth from every bulb while the sky darkened a little more. The buildings they walked past started to blend into purple shadows. And Serena was usually scared around this time of dusk, of twilight. But around Darien--she wouldn't admit it to herself, but she felt very safe. Safe, and protected. The kind of security she usually only felt around family and best friends.

But even his unconsciously given protection wasn't enough for Serena. She wasn't exactly protected from the cold chill that had started to blow.

"Are you cold?" His voice startled her for a moment, melting into the air and warming the atmosphere around her for a second or two. Shivering, she shook her head nonchalantly, trying to blow the whole thing off.

"Just a little," Serena admitted. "But the uniforms are always this thin at Crossroads, so--" She froze in place as she suddenly felt a soft, warm material wrap around her shoulders and hang off of her body.

Darien had draped his forest-green sports jacket on her after hearing her talk and watching her shiver and rub her arms a few times unconsciously, his hand brushing her bared neck as he put it on her delicately. Soft, warm skin...his cheeks burned red, almost as red as hers. She mumbled a barely audible "Thanks" as a dark car whizzed by on the streets, its headlights glaring.

"What's this?" he tried to play off jokingly, praying that Serena wouldn't happen to look up at him when they were under a streetlight and see his face. "Serena, the quiet, blushing maiden of yore?" He flashed a grin, looking up with an air at the newly-appearing moon.

"And who's talking?" Serena replied back quickly, his touch on her neck still burning onto her skin. "Darien, the loudmouth, red-cheeked, squire of the maiden?"  
Damn. She had seen him blushing.

"Me? YOUR squire? If I would sink that low."

"If only," she bantered back dauntingly, "you had enough honor to be a servant of yours truly." Looking up at him triumphantly, thinking she had won the insult match, she found him staring up at the large crescent moon that was hanging in the sky like a glass ornament. Strange enough, his eyes seemed to mull over each and every visible crater, looking for something. And this scenario, this situation, felt so... familiar.

'The stars are never as shiny as they are tonight,' Serena decided to herself secretly. She stayed by his side, in comfortable silence until his lips parted to say something.  
"Isn't that beautiful?" Darien finally spoke up. He made a gesture towards the moon. "And all those stars. Tonight is simply gorgeous. It would be such a waste for someone not to be out here, watching."

Something in Serena twinged at her heart painfully then, and words escaped her mouth before she could stop them.

"They say," she spoke softly, not indicating who 'they' were, "that when two people look upon a crescent Moon together, their love for each other is forged." Her eyes opened wide with confusion over what she had just said as Darien's head turned quickly to hers. His eyes searched her face; strange enough, she didn't mind. Her heart was beating much too fast for that to matter.

"Immediate love?" he finally said, turning his gaze to the streets laid out before them. His voice became slightly bitter. "As much as I'd like to believe in it, I don't."

"But why not?" she said hurriedly, almost blubbering the words. Embarrassed for her obvious interest in his beliefs, she almost took back her question as Darien replied willingly.

"Experience, I guess you could say." They started to walk again as Darien's eyes never strayed to the moon. "I always hated the way people said 'We fell in love at first sight'. I never believed in that, either." Throughout the whole conversation, he kept wondering why he was letting her- -Serena, this insignificant junior high kid--She is not insignificant nor just a kid!...okay, this junior high student, he thought silently, trying to calm his now-hyperventilating inner voice down...either way, he couldn't figure out why he was letting her past his defenses. It took him a while to trust somebody.

With Serena, he felt he could trust her with anything. It was almost scary, the way he finally realized it. All along, he had been torturing her, teasing her... just to gain a friendship.

And JUST a friendship, that's all. Darien pounded the words into his head forcefully. 'Friendship, that's all it is. Friendship.' Another silence followed as their thoughts rambled on within their minds. Serena, clearing her throat quickly, began to speak.

"Don't you think that--that just the thought of love at first sight is totally romantic, though?" She looked up at him for his agreement and approval as he looked back down at her and nodded slowly.

"Romantic, but not the way I'd go for it. Excuse me for being an old sentimentalist, but I believe that..." Darien sighed, letting out hot, sticky breath and breathing in cool, fresh air. "...to tell the truth, I think love is a gradual thing. Nothing that blossoms overnight." Smiling slightly at the metaphor, he noticed that Serena's arms were crossed and her expression sour. "Was it something that I said?"

"Well, I've been in love at first sight," Serena pouted.

"Andrew and the paperboy don't count," Darien teased gently, grinning. She huffed angrily.

"It's not them. It's...well...another guy." Gazing down at her, he saw her eyes start to shine like the stars that had twinkled so gaily above them when they had been gazing at the sky together. Her cheeks became flushed and her voice excited.

'And I am NOT jealous!' he thought to himself inwardly.

"Who is this 'lucky' guy, if he's so lucky?" The tone of his voice was a bit hard as he tried not to let his gaze fall on the exuberant girl next to him. She replied willingly.

"Well...he's mysterious," Serena giggled. "And--suave. Incredibly suave. Totally handsome."

"Sounds like God's gift to women," he contemplated blankly. Not recognizing his sudden loss of interest, Serena continued.

"He's always there for me, whenever I need him..." She breathed softly, the cold air biting her lungs. "And he...protects me. Every day, he always puts himself in front of me and protects me."

Wait a second, Serena...she stopped herself.

Her eyes widening, she realized that she was describing none other than...Tuxedo Mask... Turning away from Darien hurriedly, she put her mouth over her lips in embarrassment. 'You don't even know the guy, Serena. Give up your school-girl crush.' But it feels like you've known him forever, doesn't it? ...It's...the same with Darien, isn't it?

"What's wrong, Serena?" They stopped again, still a little far from the Temple. His face twisted slightly and his stomach felt out-of-sorts, as he kept convincing himself that it wasn't really any of his concern. About who Serena was talking about, that is. And yet, he couldn't help but wonder...some junior high kid? A guy she had known for years? Pressing his lips tightly together, his handsome, chiseled features were startlingly noticeable under the streetlamp they had walked under and now stood. Serena could feel the tension swell up in the silence. This time, there were no jokes to break it. She sighed heavily as she stared at the pavement.

"First love..." she trailed off slowly. "Maybe you're right, Darien. Maybe love at first sight is just a stupid joke."

The words were ugly as soon as they were spit out of her mouth, the tall man decided regretfully. 'I wish I had never said them.'

"Look, Serena...this, uh, boyfriend of yours..."

"He's not a boyfriend," Serena answered wearily. The black-haired man waved away the insignificant fact as if it were a mere fly.

"Either way, what I really meant is that you can't love a person just by looking at them. I like to think it happens like sunshine--startling, at first. Then slowly warming, pulling every sense in your body inside-out with its terrific warmth. Like...like an old friend that starts to make your heart pound a little more each day." He had never told anyone that, had he? 'I must've sounded like a sentimental idiot,' Darien cringed inwardly. His cheeks turned hot in embarrassment.

"Darien...that's...beautiful..." Serena's eyes sparkled in the darkness of the street, and made his heart skip a beat. It reminded him of that time when Sailor Moon had found his locket, and they had both touched it at the same time with white-gloved hands. He had melted, watching the Sailor Scout smile gently at him. And he hated to brush her off brusquely as he knew he must for the sake of duty...

'Waaaaaiiiit a sec here, Darien ol' boy,' something said in total disbelief inwardly. 'Are you saying that klutzy, air-headed, ditzy Serena...reminds you of Sailor Moon? What are you, out of your mind?'

"I must be," he muttered in a barely audible voice. He let his eyes stray over to Serena's, whose pair of eyes were focused on the concrete walls to her left as the Temple came into view.

'I wonder if she knows...'

'...how much I think of him,' Serena thought distractedly, watching the branches of the cherry trees sway slightly in the breeze. Raye's temple was already in seeing view. Her nice little chat with Darien would have to end soon.

But...darn, she didn't want it to end.

'He's so cute...I...' Her breath quickened at the mere thought of it. 'I think--'  
'--she likes me back,' Darien thought hopefully, unaware that their ideas and contemplations in silence were mixing and running into each other like water. Serena's shoulders were cozily warm, and his hand was still burning with the touch of her skin. But the silence was pleasant, and it was great to keep in step with the other as the sky became a lovely blue-black.

'Blue-black...' Serena mused. 'Just like his hair...' The sudden rush of the realization hit her, and she was left with a huge burst of pent-up energy waiting to be spent. Her feet, usually so awkward, seemed to glide on the pavement as she danced a little ways ahead of him. Her arms swung gracefully around her as she took in the night air, enjoying every second of it. Darien was reminded of a strange, petite swan as he watched her hop this way and that, giggling every now and then.

He wanted to join her dance, to hop and sing along with her. 'You little bewitcher,' he thought with a slow smile. 'I've never felt like this before.' Surprisingly (and to his very contented heart) his coat stayed balanced on her small shoulders.

"Have you ever taken in life like this?" she breathed wondrously. "It's cold out here, but I...I feel like I could...could fly!" And Serena felt so comfortable dancing here in front of this normally-dour, 18-year old college student, so at ease. Being the person she was, she had decided to stop questioning her feelings.

Not to mention the fact that she was scared of what they would lead to...

"I've...always wanted to fly," Darien smiled, his voice softening with every word. She gave him a sunny grin that seemed to light up the night air, then closed her eyes and twirled 'en pointe', taking full advantage of her abnormal amount of grace.

Too bad the state of mind was lost when her foot found its wait to a crack in the sidewalk where the weeds had grown through. Almost too shocked to scream, she braced herself for the pain of hitting hard concrete and for Darien's wide stares and laughs.  
Neither came.

But Serena's heart bounced like rubber and into her throat from the spot where she had almost fallen, as the scent of his cologne heightened her senses of his arms around her. 'He's always there for me, whenever I need him...' Her earlier quote resounded in her head gently as Serena's light, happy blue eyes met Darien's soft, dark blue ones. 'And he...protects me.'

They stared into each other's eyes and that same little piece of strayed lightning--just a flash, perhaps, but it was definitely something-- felt...so...so right. Serena's golden-blonde pigtails trailed onto the ground from her head, the pavement only a few feet from where her head stayed now, nestled into Darien's chest. He had come...saved her, in the nick of time.

Trying to stop his arms from trembling, he swallowed slowly and smiled softly in the dim light. "You're so klutzy," Darien whispered, almost chokingly. His head was bent near hers.

"Yeah," she breathed back in relief and in wonderment, a whiff of peppermints coming from her mouth and itching his nose slightly. But it was a delicious itch. They couldn't stop looking at each other, and the spell was cast.

'I wonder if...' The light pair of eyes shook.

'...I'm...going to kiss her?' The dark pair of eyes blinked quickly, not wanting to lose sight of their target for a second. His lips hovered over hers, waiting. Eager. And they both felt the chemistry in the air weigh both lightly and heavily over their heads, as if...as if they were always supposed to have their arms around each other.

Whatever it was called, Serena knew...he was going to kiss her. And Darien knew he was going to kiss her. Just as she closed her eyes in a blissful flutter and he closed his regretfully, not wanting to stop staring at her...

Suddenly, both were jerked into opening their eyes and moving away from each other involuntarily as the glib, high-pitched voices of teenage girls filled the air and shattered the would-be moment. The 'couple' moaned in disappointment inwardly as shadows appeared on the pavement.

"Where is that stupid Meatball Head, anyway?" a girl fumed, a bit of jealousy woven into her voice. Both Serena and Darien blinked as they looked around quickly at their surroundings and barely breathed.

They were almost at the steps of the Cherry Hill Temple--just to the right of them, actually. The streetlamp nearest to them flickered as Serena's eyes met his in a fearful, aching way. All he wanted to do was give her what she wanted...

"Raye..." she whispered. Shivering with the sudden cold and missing his arms around her, she looked at him again. He had straightened his back and gazed down at her with an expression she could and couldn't read. His hands were now clasped in front of his khakis.

...She couldn't speak a word to him. What had just happened, just now...was untouchable. Serena couldn't--no, wouldn't-ruin that moment. And from the looks of it, Darien didn't want to, either.

So she gave him a soft, gentle smile for him only, turned around quickly, and ran towards the voices of her best friends. Serena prayed that her heart would stop beating so fast, that her head would stop spinning before she collapsed...

Standing there silently, the dark-haired young man watched her go. His arms tingled with her touch, a few stray hairs of blonde still sticking to his thick black turtleneck. A smile crossed his face before he put his hands in his pockets and turned the other way, whistling a tune. And in his mind, he couldn't help but wonder what would have happened if...if...smiling even harder, his piercing blue eyes closed and opened slowly. It was better to give his head a rest, after today.

Serena's heart had never danced so fast as she finally caught up to the her chattering friends and fellow Scouts--Raye, Amy and Lita. Their surprised looks to see her were blatantly ignored by Serena's lightly sparkling blue eyes as the flush on her cheeks bloomed and blossomed. They started to say something to her but the words went into one ear and whizzed out the other.

'He was...looking at me...as if he had been waiting for his whole life for me. And I, him.' Perhaps...perhaps love wasn't just champagne and kisses, like she had always imagined it to be. Or fancy dresses and pretty, classy balls.

Maybe it was more like a gradual friendship, something seemingly prose and dull and unsuspecting until a sudden burst of light revealed the true colors and poetry beneath.

But it wasn't love. Not yet. But the feeling was much too strong for using "like". 'I guess,' Serena thought quietly as Lita chattered on about how worried they were about her, 'I guess it's just...just something. Yeah...that tangible something.'

Rest assured, they would be the same arguing, bickering odd pair tomorrow as they were the day before, and the day before that. There would be almost no trace of the emotions revealed so freshly, the feelings as raw as they were. Even though these moments together would seemingly disappear and never be mentioned to another soul, and that they wouldn't ever talk of this again...Serena knew, she just knew that Darien wouldn't--couldn't forget today, even if he tried.

Looking up at Raye's sudden barking, she gave everyone an apologetic mumble and mumbled a barely audible excuse for not being with them earlier. Amy and Lita merely smiled back in the silence, while Raye's face turned an uncomely shade of rage red.

"Serena," Raye said finally, dangerously glaring, "why are you wearing Darien's jacket?"

'You mean, it's still on my shoulders?' Serena screamed inwardly. Then she calmed down, his warmth still feeding her through the bare threads of the forest-green material. She smiled mysteriously.

"Something..." She punctuated the word softly, wanting to eat up each syllable. Each syllable of the word, each letter of the word screamed out his name. "Something happened."

And Serena brushed the jacket--his jacket--with care.

**Fin.**

BEWARE THE NEGAVERSE! doom upon your house!

Haha, oh DiC.you make me giggle like a schoolgirl. What do you think? Not too shabby for being a four-year old story, right? Anyhow, I've gotta mention that the definition of love that Darien uses in here is directly attributed to L.M. Montgomery's Anne of Green Gables series. :D

By the way… back when I wrote this story I went under my real name (Kris M.)… so if this story looks familiar… that's me. I'm so surprised people still remember this story from so long ago! Makes me feel very appreciated.

And lastly, thanks for reading--as I went through the story and reformatted it in HTML, it made me realize what a cute little gem it was. Hopefully you feel the same way.

Limey

"I was just thinking that I wanted to see you..."  
--Usagi, Vol. 1 Act 4


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